Xi arrives in US to personal Trump welcome

US president Donald Trump and US first lady Melania Trump (right) greet Chinese president Xi Jinping and China’s first lady Peng Liyuan upon their arrival at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. (AFP pic)

JOINT BASE ANDREWS: US President Donald Trump treated Chinese President Xi Jinping to a rare personal airport welcome Wednesday, kicking off a pomp-filled state visit aimed at smoothing superpower tensions on everything from AI and trade to Iran.

Trump and First Lady Melania shook hands with Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan after the Chinese president descended from his plane at Joint Base Andrews, a US military airfield outside Washington.

Trump, wearing a long coat and gloves, and Xi then stood side by side on the tarmac as a military band played, before two B-1 bombers staged a noisy flyover.